We are really excited to have these three great sponsors be the first to step up and support our efforts to educate the small business community about how they can use Social Media for being more effective and efficient with their marketing, communications and collaboration. What I like to simply call MCC (as opposed to MARCOM, which references the old one way broadcast model).

It looks right now as if the cost per person is going to be about $42 – since we are only charging $25, we wouldn’t be able to make this happen without their support. Each of these companies want to support small businesses, start-ups and most importantly, the ideals behind out effort to empower more PEOPLE with an understanding of how they can get the most from emerging Social Media and general technology.

It is with much gratitude and respect that I introduce them to you…

About HubSpot

HubSpot is an Internet marketing system that helps your company get found online, generate more inbound leads and convert a higher percentage of them into paying customers. HubSpot helps companies get found by more prospects using search engine optimization and marketing, leveraging blogs and the blogosphere and engaging in online social media. By using landing pages, lead intelligence and marketing analytics, HubSpot customers convert more prospects into leads and paying customers. Based in Cambridge, MA, HubSpot can be found at http://www.hubspot.com.

About Market Wire
The only fully integrated North America-based global newswire, Marketwire, Inc. is a full-service partner to IR, PR and MarCom professionals seeking top-tier press release distribution, media management, multimedia and monitoring solutions. Marketwire’s customer-centric corporate philosophy focuses on being the best by infusing every aspect of its business with the following core attributes: precision, adaptability, innovation and simplicity.

Marketwire delivers its clients’ news to the world’s media and financial communities, fulfilling disclosure requirements in North America in compliance with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), and serving as Primary Information Provider (PIP) with the UK’s Financial Services Authority (FSA). With a reputation for technology leadership, Marketwire offers innovative products and services — including Social Media, Search Engine Optimization, Dashboard Mobile Financial, News Dashboard coverage reports, exclusive access to networks such as the Canadian Press Wire Network, Easy IR and Easy PR workflow solutions, and more — that help communication professionals maximize their effectiveness while ensuring accuracy and best practices. Having merged companies (Market Wire and CCNMatthews) in April 2006, and enjoying a combined history of 25 years of service, Marketwire is now majority-owned by OMERS Capital Partners, the private equity arm of one of Canada’s largest pension funds.

Marketwire distributes the majority of press releases issued by publicly traded companies in Canada and serves more than 8,000 clients worldwide through 20 offices on four continents. For more information, visit us at http://www.marketwire.com/

About Microsoft BizSpark

Microsoft BizSpark is a three-year program made available to technopreneurs and start-ups that have formed private companies developing software-based products or services and have been in business for less than three years with an annual revenue of less than USD$0.5 million or RM1.75 million.

By joining the program, a start-up has access to Microsoft’s current full-featured development tools, platform technologies, and “production licenses” for software hosted in the “software as a service” model free of charge for up to three years. The production licenses include Windows Server (all versions, up to and including Enterprise); SQL Server (all versions); Office SharePoint Server; Systems Center, and BizTalk Server. For more information in Microsoft BizSpark, please visit: www.microsoft.com/bizspark.